World-renowned psychic medium MaryRose Occhino teams up with her daughter, Jacqueline Sullivan, for this first-of-its-kind guide to provide readers with the seven keys for enhancing their lives and, in so doing, to promote inner healing and spiritual development.
In a universe where we’re all connected, each person has the ability to improve his or her life by following these seven vital keys (FEAR NOT): F – Fearlessness, E – Expect the unexpected, A – Arise to every occasion, R – Relax your energy, N – Never Say Never!, O – Observe, T – Telepathy. In this remarkable handbook, MaryRose and her daughter prove that it’s possible to mentally keep alive that invisible umbilical cord connecting us with the rest of the world.
A must-read for anyone looking to reclaim a lost spiritual connection – whether it’s to a friend, parent, or coworker – Awakened Instincts proves that once a person’s inner potential is roused from its slumber, the possibilities for a better life are boundless.

Although I believe I've been psychic since birth and I've been very much in tune with the energy around me, I can honestly say that there was a time in my life, especially after I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, that I somehow unknowingly closed the intuitive gate to my instincts. Once that gate closed, I needed to find new keys to reopen the gate and keep it open for good.

Living an intuitive awakened life was the only kind of life I had ever known. Fortunately, my instincts weren't lost forever. They were simply misplaced somewhere, deep inside what had become my hazy psyche. In hindsight, I realize that my perceptive vision wasn't blocked because I had somehow become less intuitive or because of my newly diagnosed disability. It was because my gut instincts drifted off to an unknown place, somewhere very much like a deserted island. My instincts were blinded because I was missing my "third eye."

Our Third Eye

My third eye, also known as the astral eye, was nowhere to be found. I looked and looked for my third eye, but I kept coming up empty.

I know many of you reading this may have heard the term third eye with respect to psychic intuition. Some of you are probably staring blankly at this page, thinking, "What the heck is she talking about? A third eye?" Allow me to explain.

An encyclopedia definition of the third eye is a metaphysical and esoteric concept referring to the anja chakra, located at our brow. (Chakra is a Sanskrit term that expresses the life-force energy in our body. We have chakras located all over our bodies.

The sixth chakra, situated at the brow, or the lower forehead between the eyes, is also known as the third eye. I explain chakras and their significance in great detail in the chapter on telepathy.)

The third eye goes far beyond a simple dictionary definition. It is also known as a symbol of enlightenment, especially associated with visions, clairvoyance, and precognitions. It allows us to see and feel with our soul and inner core. In my case, my third eye has made me extremely sensitive and conscious of the world and the energies around me. (Keep in mind some people work a lifetime to develop this level of ability with their third eye.)

Additionally, my third eye has enlightened me with information that has helped me emotionally. It enabled me instinctively to understand more about my illness, and all illnesses, as time went by. I was able to see what would help or hinder me. My third eye helps me with anything that may pertain to my life or my well-being, or the well-being of others.

Reaching Your Personal Universe
My third eye allows me to access my personal universe. This is the place where my soul exists. My personal universe is the place where all my reasons for living and being are kept.
Your personal universe is not a secret place, but a place all your own. It's as unique as your DNA. In fact, when you visit your personal universe, it's as though you're getting reacquainted with your DNA -- your reasoning and your purpose in life. It belongs to no one but you.

It's natural to doubt that you have a personal universe and a third eye. But even if you're not aware of those very special parts of you, they're there, and I'm going to show you how to find them.

I know the terms personal universe and third eye may seem odd to you. Well, third-eye terminology isn't my creation -- it's been around for thousands of years. The personal universe expression is my own premise, but it's simple enough that even paranormal skeptics should find it easy to swallow. In case you're still having a little trouble, here's a scenario that may help you to understand the everyday uses of your third eye and your personal universe. (It's of paramount importance to me that this book be easy for novices of psychic phenomena to understand. No offense to those who hold PhDs in quantum physics, but there's no big scientific brain needed to follow these uncomplicated lessons.)

You've probably heard someone referred to as "living in her own world." You know the kind of person I'm speaking about -- the one who seems to be drifting off into space, not paying attention to the world around her, with her mind up in the clouds. When we think of the phrase, "living in your own world," it usually carries a negative connotation, as if the person we're talking about is a bit loony, out there, or just a smidge gaga. To tell you the truth, even now, when I think about how I have used the phrase, it sounds kind of freaky to me, too. But I do believe that living in your own world, at times, can be a very good thing -- as long as it's done for the right reasons, and as long as you don't stay away from reality for too long.

"Being a little spacey," to me, means getting away from others for awhile and being silently by yourself. It's a way to help yourself zero in on your own wellness. Now, some people believe that just being alone, away from others, allows them to become centered again when they're feeling uncentered, even if they're still communicating with the outside world via telephone or email. Well, I've got news for you: as far as I'm concerned, no can do! You've got to be alone-alone. Really alone, with no outside suggestions or opinions, and that means no television or radio, either. Everyone and everything has to get shut out. Don't get yourself in a panic. You won't have to "be a little spacey" for very long. Just long enough for you to see yourself for what you're worth -- not in material value or monetary value, but in a spiritual and intuitive sense.

While we're "spacing out," what we're really doing is looking inside ourselves at the very real issues that are going on in our lives, with spot-on objectivity and without being influenced by the opinions of others. We're living, and dealing with, our own reality. It's what some people call finding their center or looking inward.

Before you go any further into these lessons, you must understand that you cannot enhance your life or boost any aspect of it with the overindulgence of drugs or alcohol. Our job in this life is to remember why we were put on this earth -- something that can only be understood when our minds are clear of mind-altering substances. I believe we are here with the object of finally "getting it," remembering why we are here and what path we hope to be on.

And please keep in mind -- we all have different paths and different wants and we can't shove our desires into someone else's life journey. That would be like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. And we all know that just doesn't work.

Using Your Personal Universe

There are occasions when I find it necessary to drift off by myself and find my center. Those instances come around because I may have gotten caught up in the whirlwind of life.
You may find yourself off course for many reasons. Perhaps you have simply too much stress in your life. Or you may be recovering from a bad flu and you physically feel out of sorts. Or maybe you've just ended a relationship with someone you thought was Mr. or Ms. Right.

Whatever the reason, you need to get back and find your center -- to remember why you are here. It's like rediscovering the reasons for your existence. You can recall how to enjoy your life, and how to love the life and the physical body you're occupying. Finding your center, or becoming centered again, feels as though you've found a magical spiritual prescription that works as an antibiotic for your soul. (A prescription, I am certain, that isn't covered by any HMO!)

For example, I used to get caught up in other people's energy and distracted from my path. (Thank God I'm now mentally signaled by my subconscious, which in turn awakens my consciousness, so I'm aware of when I'm getting caught up in other people's energy before it's too late.) Sometimes my head is just spinning from having put too many demands upon myself -- a feeling I'm sure you've also had more than once. On those occasions, I go into deep thought and meditate in my own personal world where no one knows me like I know me. The trick, then, is to find me again before I get lost in the crowd of the universe's energy. So I pull back and visit my personal universe.

Sometimes this happens spontaneously; sometimes you have to concentrate to do it. I've now trained myself and my consciousness to know when I need to get back on track, so my mind automatically goes there without any outside coaxing. Other times I indeed schedule time with my subconscious -- consciously -- and take time out of my normal routine to find out what's really going on in my personal world.
So how can you "subconsciously" schedule time with yourself "consciously"? It's simple. All you have to do is to tell yourself that the next time you feel yourself going off base, you'd like to be reminded, or given a heads-up, when it's happening again. Your subconscious mind will then awaken your consciousness as to what's going on with you.

Looking into your personal universe helps you reconfigure your energy, just the same way you would reconfigure a computer that is moving too slowly or is frozen completely.
You know, when you think about it, we're really more like computers than we realize. We need to reboot our minds in order to awaken our instincts, the same way our computers need to be rebooted when they become frozen. I'm sure I don't have to remind you how you feel when your computer freezes up. It drives me to the brink of insanity sometimes, especially when I have a deadline and my computer refuses to respond to my commands. Well, when our instincts become frozen because of life's mishaps or because of stress-related overload, we need to use our very own virtual surge protector. That's our natural instincts, which can only be acquired in our personal universe.
How can closing off the rest of the world or going within ourselves awaken our instincts? Believe it or not, most of us do it all the time, but we're just unaware of it. When we go off into our own little world, or when we meditate and zero in on ourselves, it's a way for us to release our minds as well as our immune systems from the tensions or difficulties that we may be having. Think of yourself exploring your personal universe and finding the keys that open the door to relaxation for your soulful muscles. Consider it a visit to a spiritual day spa.

The time we spend in our personal universe is very important for our psychic intuition as well as our physical well-being. While we're in our zone, or what some of us call "zoning out," we get a chance to read and perceive the information the universe is sending us. This information will help us to comprehend the kinds of energy we're attracting from around us (energies emanating from certain people or situations), and give us a heads-up on what we should be doing about any negative or unhealthy vibrations that may be coming our way.

Losing My Sight -- In More Ways Than One

At the time when my vision was temporarily blocked, my connection to my personal universe seemed to have vanished. My perception to the information the universe was sending me was gone, and my normally awakened instincts were void of thought.
I no longer had easy access to the adventurer in me. In the past, I was always able to search and investigate the energies of not only my surroundings, but of people and/or issues that were not in my physical presence at the time. This was my third eye.

My internal invisible gaze or my center eye had always worked almost like a superhero laser beam, honing in on targets. In some cases, this may have been reading someone's thoughts -- what's commonly known as telepathy, or being telepathic. Also, I would often get a feeling about an outcome to a situation, therefore I was clairvoyant about many things that had not yet happened. I had come to rely on these special gifts, and now I realized I had taken these gifts for granted. The extraordinary enlightenments I was so accustomed to seemed to be hiding from me, somewhere far, far away in an unknown distant universe. I was desperate to find them and get them back.

I missed that part of me the same way someone would miss a limb. Without my intuitive awareness, I wasn't able to "see" the way I saw before. I felt crippled in more ways than one.
It was my awakened instincts that had allowed me to explore the consciousness and needs of my children, my friends, my family, and my careers, plus all of my personal relationships. And now they had somehow become numb.

That special intuitive element of my being -- a bequest since birth -- had become as anesthetized as one's gums after getting a Novocain injection for a root canal. And the reason for my inherent lapse was nothing other than two key components: shock and outrage.
I was shocked and outraged that God and the universe had dealt me such a rotten hand with my disease, multiple sclerosis. I couldn't comprehend, no matter how hard I tried, that my life, the life I had always known, the life of a mentally strong and physically independent single parent, was disappearing before my very eyes.

My vision problem was the first apparent symptom. It's what's commonly known among neurologists or MS specialists as optic neuritis, an inflammation behind the optic nerve. It's a common condition or symptom found in MS sufferers.

My sight was changing from one day to another. Some days I could see as well as I did before my new medical diagnosis. But most days when I awoke, I remember feeling as though my eyes had a layer of film on them. I had gotten into the habit of rubbing them in the first minutes after I awoke, trying to wipe off whatever seemed to be coating my eyes. When I saw friends and family, I would ask them, "Do you see anything in my eyes?" (I already had told them about my vision problems so they were happy to try to help me in any way they could.) I'd walk up close to the person I was questioning, nearly nose-to-nose, and hold my eyelid open so they could get a good look into my eyes. And after their careful examination of my pupils, their answers were always the same. "Mary, I don't see anything floating around in there anywhere."
But their inability to find a problem didn't satisfy my perplexed and frightened mind. In my heart of hearts, I knew they were probably right, but I wasn't ready to accept their answers. Why? Because if they were correct and there wasn't anything actually floating in my eyes, it meant I was really ill. MS was actually changing my nervous system and affecting my sight and that frightened me beyond words.

And so, I lived in my state of denial for as long as I could. I tried ignoring my medical condition as well as everyone's inability to find that floating object that was marring my vision. I continued to pray that one day someone would finally look inside my eyes and say, "Hey Mary, you know what? You're right, there is something floating around in there!" Boy, that answer would have made me one happy camper.

But soon after the first few times I questioned my friends or family about my eyes, I got tired of the subconscious game that I was playing with myself. I also tired of asking other people for their opinions about my life.

The exception was my daughter Jacqueline. Why, of all the people in my life, would I continue to ask Jacqueline, who was only ten years old at the time? The answer is simple. I knew Jacqueline wouldn't lie to me, and although my senses seemed to have gone askew, I still knew that my daughter knew me best -- body, mind, and spirit -- almost as well as I did. Or, the way I used to know me before I lost my relationship with my personal universe.

Fear Can Turn into a Chronic Disease

Jacqueline, or Jackie, as I often call her, could psychically as well as telepathically read me. Sometimes her telepathy was a gift, and other times a burden -- it all depended on the way we looked at it on any given day.
If I was feeling well, I didn't mind Jackie being able to read my feelings and thoughts. But if I wasn't feeling well, I would try to shut her out of my vibratory energy. Try as I might, Jackie could always break through. She inherited her instincts from me, as I believe I inherited mine from the women in our family.

Not only was my eyesight in trouble, I had also lost the intuitive link to my consciousness which had always connected me to the energies around me. I found myself needing Jackie's input more than ever before. This was the new Mary, the one who could no longer rely on her intuitive third eye. How could this happen?

Here's how. In the physical body, the eye views objects upside-down. It sends the image of what it observes to the brain, which interprets the image and makes it appear right side up. The human body has another eye -- the third eye -- which in reality is the pineal gland. The pineal gland is not an actual eye, but is believed by some to be a dormant organ that can be awakened to enable telepathic communication.

So you could say my chakras were asleep. I was having trouble seeing with my two natural eyes, and also struggling to connect with my telepathic and psychic communicator. In essence, I was forgetting what it was to be me, the person who once lived inside my head. The person who knew what was happening to her life with regard to the past, present, and the future.

But poor Jackie. There were times that she couldn't get away from my questions, even if she wanted to. You see, even if I didn't ask her any questions out loud, she was still telepathic. She could usually sense what I was feeling, especially during those times I was upset. Because we shared the same bedroom, she was right there when I woke up every morning and she was there to witness my daily eye-rubbing ritual. She realized what I was doing without me saying one word.
Now as I look back on how fast she had to grow up, especially when dealing with my illness, I'm saddened. The tides of our lives were turning way too quickly, with Jackie having to be my sometimes-caretaker instead of me being hers. This would begin once she walked in the door, coming home from play or school. Jackie could no longer be a little girl living in a fantasy world of Barbie dolls and dress-up.

No, once she opened our apartment door Jackie became my health partner in the fight of my life. She helped not only as my life preserver, but also by helping me stay afloat mentally, stopping me from drowning in deep despair.

As I think back now on those times, I'm very proud of how caring and extremely intuitive she was at such a young age. She continues to be that way today.

Jackie knew just how to handle me. Every time I think about how mature she was, it blows my mind. In hindsight, I realize that my own fears may have become intertwined in her own consciousness and that saddens me all the more. If I could turn back time, if I could have just one wish, it would be that Jackie hadn't had to grow up so quickly, leaving her childhood securities behind at all too early an age. You know the securities I'm talking about -- the ones most of us enjoyed when we were kids. "Don't worry. Mommy will take care of everything."

But our cards weren't dealt that way. Jackie unfortunately experienced through her subconscious every symptom I had. She felt and heard my rants, my cries, and sometimes my laughter when I couldn't figure out what the heck was going to happen to my body or to my mind next.

Jackie was there with me as my fears grew. When monstrously, my fears grew way out of proportion or I seemed to be physically crashing, Jackie would always remind me of my strengths. She helped keep me from caving in to my fears and at those times she would become my little cheerleader. One of her favorite cheers was, "Mom, you have to fight this thing." She would say this with such conviction that she'd make me remember that I was in charge of my own body. Jackie's cheer made me remember the strong-willed Mary that had lived through many different disappointments and illnesses. Such as a sudden hysterectomy at thirty-one, emergency back surgery, and a long list of other ailments I believe were brought on by stress. So with Jackie's positive voice ringing in my ear, I started to believe that even though I maybe couldn't cure this disease, I sure wasn't going to get comfortable living with it. I was going to fight it -- for her and for me.

Jackie is more than just my daughter. She is an extension of my consciousness, and she's been at my side every step of the way. From the minute I would wake up in the morning until I'd lay my head down to sleep, Jackie was there for me. Still, now, she's here for me and I am forever grateful to God and the universe for sending her to me.

But back then, I shared a little one-bedroom garden apartment on Long Island, New York, with my daughter. I would wake up every morning rubbing my eyes, trying to shake off my blurry vision. Before long, I realized my eyes weren't sleepy or hazy, but just sick. And so, I had to come to grips with my fears and the reality that I had MS. For all the rubbing I would do, I couldn't wake up or erase the large white spider-shaped film that impaired my vision in the bright sunlight. Nor could I erase the black floating spots that appeared whenever I looked or focused on anything bright, like the walls of my bedroom or the morning sunshine.

The sun only made my vision worse. Ironically, one of the main reasons I was so excited about renting our new apartment was that it was on the sunny side of the street. Now my bedroom's beautiful bay window was a constant reminder that I was ill, and the morning's light was the most depressing part of my day. Those mornings made me realize that this thing, MS, the condition that the doctors had diagnosed me with, wasn't going away -- not yet anyway. That ticked me off and made me fearful.
And, dear readers, fear is an illness all its own.

After intense soul searching and with help from my daughter Jackie, I finally confronted my fears and realized that I didn't like the way I was reacting to these unwanted parts of my new life. I realized I was becoming an anxious, frightened wreck who was manifesting every negative emotion I could conjure in my frightened fearful mind.

What was I afraid of? I was afraid of the unknown and every danger that might be lying ahead of me. I realized that I was becoming more and more fearful of life, and I didn't know this fearful person. This Mary was a total stranger to me and so were these fears. Fears were locking many of the doors to my instincts.

Not all of my instincts were closed for business. If I needed to, I could still read other people and answer questions about their lives as long as they had nothing to do with me. But when it came to my own life, I literally and metaphorically couldn't see my own way out of a paper bag.

Most people (but not Jacqueline) believed I was fearless. They thought I would and could overcome anything that the universe could throw at me, but I was frightened out of my mind.
And you know what happens when you're afraid of what's coming next? That something comes next!

One day when I awoke and rubbed my eyes the way I had done on so many previous mornings, for once there were no floaters in my left eye. You'd think I'd be thrilled to be rid of them, finally, but no. Why? Because that morning I was totally blind in that eye. Thank goodness I could still see the floaters in my right eye, so I hadn't completely lost my physical vision. Then I realized how much I suddenly missed the once-annoying floating spots in my left eye.

I was lucky. The loss of sight in my left eye lasted for only seven weeks. My doctors told me the optic neuritis I was suffering was a common occurrence with MS patients. It didn't feel common to me, and those seven weeks felt like an eternity. The doctors were quick to warn me that there was no guarantee that my vision would ever come back.

Interestingly, that's the exact time my then ten-year-old daughter Jackie became my assistant, both spiritually and scientifically. Jackie, being an intuitive by nature and also sharing my zodiac sign, Scorpio, was quick to tell me when I was being too whiny. She gave me the courage and the tools to find my own way back to me -- the tough, fearless mother she had once known.

Once the shock of my blindness wore off and I had a chance to meditate and really sit down with my feelings, I started to ask myself some tough questions. The big question: did my fear of losing my sight make me lose my sight?

When I asked myself that question I considered that my anxieties most definitely added to my condition. To make sure I wasn't all to blame, I asked my doctors and they said it was just a symptom of MS. But as they said those words, my heart and my intuition told me that I had truly made my fears become my reality.

And as the years went on, I became whole again, not just like before, but I was a better Mary than before. My daughter became a better Jacqueline than before by utilizing her intuition while helping me rediscover mine. I knew I had to write this book, with my daughter's help, because Jackie and I learned so many lessons along the way. The lessons changed us in every aspect of our lives, and we want to and need to share them with you. My friends, we call these lessons, "The Seven Keys to Enhance Every Aspect of Your Life."

Now, if you've already discovered the acronym found in the seven aspects to enhance your life, bravo! If you haven't, don't feel bad. It took me a while to hear and observe what my guides wanted me to get across to you, and that's FEARNOT. That's what is spelled out, when you list these aspects. Keep in mind this book is not a test, but a guide to help you enhance your life in every aspect, as it has for my daughter and myself. An extra benefit is that you'll become FEARLESS in the process, too!

To get you started straight away on developing your instincts for your own life enhancements, I'd like for us to establish an introduction to each other. Through this telepathic exploring of each other's consciousness, we will start a friendship. The words and intentions as well as affirmations you are about to read come from my heart and soul. I share them with you, and I want for you all that I want for myself.

Before we begin learning about our first key, I'd like to get your engines roaring and give you eleven positive affirmations to say to yourself, out loud if possible. So my dear new friend, imagine you and I are sitting on my living room couch, and I've just handed you my private diary. You're reading it out loud for me and for you our positive affirmations and declarations.

We are declaring the way the world will see us and how we will see and be greeted by the universe. My daughter and I have tested these affirmations/declarations and so far so good. I take that back. So far, so great!

Your Fearless Declarations

1. My life's energy will be enhanced immediately and it will withdraw from its limbo state-of-being. Everything that I've been waiting for will start manifesting exactly the way I've dreamed and visualized it -- beginning today!

2. I can see the image of the new and improved me as I look within the mirror of my soul. My new awakened life begins right now.

3. I am sufficient enough to accomplish all my desires just the way I am.

4. I will stop being afraid of the unknown and I will close the door to my past mistakes and hurts.

5. I am happily anticipating my bright future.

6. I am in the process of developing my individual power and I will search deep inside myself in order to own my unique characteristics, and reveal the identity of my emotional consciousness and intuition.

7. It's time I become healthier and understand that I'm entering a healing journey that will keep my vibratory (energy) levels balanced.

8. I will challenge my mind and body both mentally and physically without doing harm to myself.

9. I will rid myself of all bad and unhealthy habits that I've been holding on to for much too long.

10. I will set goals for myself that I will achieve with ease.

11. I will not allow myself to live by anyone else's life standards. I am the master of my universe!

Now that you've declared your affirmations to the universe for the new and enhanced you, you're ready to move on to the next level. Welcome to our world, and enjoy your journey.